HomeMy WebLinkAbout5/5/2026 Item 8b, Carpenter
2026 5:11 PM
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Item 7B, May 5 City Council Meeting
2026 Paving Project , Johnson Ave, SL Drive to Bishop Sts.
Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers,
My name is Dan Carpenter & I’ve lived on the east side of Johnson Ave between Fixlini &
Ella Sts for 26 years. Multiple times a day I walk this stretch between Bishop & SL Drive. It’s
not uncommon to have speeding traffic ignoring the bicycle lane separation & coming
within inches of sidewalks. The enclosed photos of Johnson Ave @ SL Drive are alarming if
you are a pedestrian or cyclist. Just three months ago, a vehicle jumped the curb and took
out the directional sign in this photo….just 100 yards from the high school. Imagine a
morning or afternoon when high school students are present. Is this not part of the safe
route to school program????!!! A buffer is obviously necessary.
Weekly, I clock significant vehicle traffic coming down the hill from Bishop at 45-50+ MPH
in this 35 MPH zone. Drivers often use this stretch of Johnson to accelerate speed as this is
the only four lane section of Johnson from Orcutt in the south, to the 101 freeway in the
north. Entering & exiting my driveway at the bottom of the hill has resulted in two minor
collisions & many near misses from speeding vehicles/bicyclists not being able to stop in
time.
I encourage you to adopt a road diet and restore on-street parking on the east side of
Johnson Avenue. Up until the early 90’s, there was parking (photo attached). The removal
has resulted in increased traffic speed and the gradual denigration of this neighborhood.
It’s time to change the auto centric focus as we have in other residential neighborhoods.
With responsible infill over the years, the entire east side is now residential on
this “RESIDENTIAL”arterial street. It includes;
*Two Master List Historic Residences.
*Infill seven single family residences just south of the high school behind the Judge’s
House.
*Del Rio Terrace, 41 - 1 bedroom affordable senior and disabled housing units.
*Extension of Fixlini Street to Johnson Ave. - including infill of 12 new single family homes.
*Bishop Street Studios (formally Sunny Acres Orphanage) - 33 units of permanent
supportive housing for mental illness and low income residents.
*Welcome Home Village - 54 unit transitional & permanent housing project under
construction.
This is the only section of Johnson Avenue with significant residential presence that does
NOT have on-street parking. Studies show that when on-street parking is present, vehicle
1
traffic speed is reduced, with the added benefit of significant separation between
moving vehicles & pedestrians. Other arterials with successful road diets (South
Street, Laurel Lane, Pismo Street, Johnson from Laurel Lane to Bishop) all have on-street
parking resulting in traffic calming & neighborhood preservation. A resent road diet on
Tank Farm Rd. between Broad & Orcutt Rds. has been a huge improvement to livability &
safety in that area.
I’ve observed for years the ingress & egress of emergency vehicles in our area, and the
concerns are exaggerated in my opinion. As an example, Fire Station #3 on the Laurel Lane
road diet has been without any access issues for years.
Finally, multiple times I offered to meet with staff to discuss possible configurations &
potential solutions from my many years of history in this area, To date, they’ve
not been receptive to my offer.
In conclusion, I strongly encourage you to continue to make pedestrian safety & quality
neighborhoods a top priority, adopt alternative #2 in your staff report and send this back
to staff insisting on the ATC’s recommendation of a road diet, including on-street parking
on the east side.
Thank you for your consideration!
Sincerely,
Daniel Carpenter
805-704-8567
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